Murdered
by Famously Infamous
Summary: [AU] Sasuke has been trapped there for years. Ten...long...years. Ever since Itachi killed them all. [Full Summary Inside]


**.:Murdered:.**

Full Summary: AU After Itachi murdered the entire Uchiha family aside from his brother, seven-year-old Uchiha Sasuke found himself being admitted into the mental hospital after the shock and loss sunk in. Ten years later, he's still in there, alone with his nightmares. But when two new volunteers show up at the hospital...

The title **Murdered** is made in reference to Sasuke's thoughts, and how Itachi destroyed them by traumatizing his brother with the massacre of their family. It vaguely describes how Sasuke lost all innocence that same day and how his mind has been ravished to the point that he can no longer live like a normal person. **Murdered** also leans into the fact that the Uchiha family was, indeed, murdered.

Genres: **Drama/Angst**

Fiction Rating: **Teen; psychological problems, language, thematic elements**

Pairings: **None**

**Disclaimer:** The day I own Naruto, the world will blow up. Therefore, I don't think anyone wants me to own it, as it were. But still, if the world blows up, you know I managed to buy the series off Masashi Kishimoto©.

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Chapter One: **Daydreams**

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_"You are not even worth killing. You've always wanted to surpass me. That's why I'm going to let you live. Foolish little brother...if you wish to kill me: hate me, detest me, and survive in an unsightly way. Run. Run and cling to life." The thirteen-year-old looked down at the boy in front of him, his black hair tied back and his eyes cold. "Why? Why did you do this, nii-san?" The younger boy pleaded. "To see what I was capable of." The instant the smaller boy heard that, his eyes rolled back into his head, and darkness overcame his vision as he collapsed._

"No!" The boy shouted; his cry strangled as it passed his lips. He sat up in his bed, fingers entangled in his hair as he stared down at his lap, breathing heavily. He didn't dare look up, afraid to see those ruthless eyes looking down at him once more. His entire body was covered in a light sheen of sweat, but the seventeen-year-old did not care. "Itachi..." He muttered lowly.

Uchiha Sasuke had woken up from the same nightmare that plagued him each and every night, and sometimes even haunted him during the day. He loosened his fingers from his hair, dropping his arms to his sides as he stared unseeing across the room.

It wasn't like the view would change. Sasuke had been locked in that same room with very few reprieves for ten years. The walls, floor, and ceiling all looked the same: all connected, with no beginning and no end, and that same disgusting, not to mention blinding, _white_.

It was a mental hospital. That was where the Uchiha boy had been locked up. If he hadn't been insane before being admitted, he certainly was now. His skin was extremely pale, and chalky, practically to the point of unhealthy, and his dark onyx eyes looked tired. Ten years.

Yet, if one saw Sasuke from a distance, he would be seen as a reasonably attractive boy. He was tall, with several muscles, though he was also extremely skinny. His hair was as black as his eyes, to the point where it almost looked blue, and went to his shoulders, sort of hanging in his face. It was coarse, unkempt and dull. Up close, he wasn't nearly as attractive.

Not that he was ugly. If he had fixed his hair, gotten a decent amount of sleep—as it was obvious it hadn't from the shadows under his eyes—and eaten more, he'd simply become that much more handsome. Out of all the patients in the hospital, no matter how bad of a condition he was in, Uchiha Sasuke was by far the best looking.

He was seven when he'd been introduced to the hell hole of a life he was living. His older brother, Uchiha Itachi, was currently missing. Ten years ago, the man had massacred his entire family. The only exception was Sasuke. However, the trauma and loss had been too much for the boy, and after he'd collapsed in the middle of the street one day screaming his lungs out about how he needed to kill his brother...it had been a clear case of insanity.

Overall, he didn't act terribly strange. He was secluded, withdrawn, and detached, but his actions showed him to be normal. Well, aside from when he sat down where he was, hugged his knees to his chest, and began babbling to himself about being an avenger. He was being addressed under the labels of "Insanity," "Trauma," and slight cases of "Antisocial Personality Disorder" and "Schizophrenia." All of which he was being given medication for.

Sasuke continued sitting up in his bed; it was as white as the walls in his home. He knew of no other home besides the mental hospital, not anymore. When he was seven, and a new patient, he'd shown his hatred by destroying everything he could get his tiny hands on, thrashing about violently all the while. Not long after, they'd made sure to remove all delicate objects, and bolt the bed and other heavier objects down. The boy was strong even in his weakened state, but not _that_ strong.

He had no social relationships. He didn't talk, aside from "Hn" or "Aa" from time to time. Complete sentences were never heard. Any ties he'd had before entering the hospital had been lost. He'd gone to school like a normal person when he had been younger, but he had no real memories of his childhood. And he'd lost a formal education once he was admitted to the hospital. The farthest his memory went to was coming home from school and seeing all the corpses of his family around, Itachi standing tall and unabashed in the center of it all. _Wanting_ people to know he'd done it.

Itachi had escaped that same night, wanted for murder by the authorities, but Sasuke knew he was the only one that could stop his brother. Unfortunately, there was absolutely no way the mental institute would let him out. When he'd turned ten, he'd gone on a rampage so terrifying for one his age, they were afraid he would mimic Itachi. They'd tied him down for a year because of that, feeding him through a drip tube.

Uchiha Sasuke might very well have been insane. But truly, no one could be sure. Part of him gave off the impression of being so—namely the part of him that talked to himself and looked at everyone around him like they were about to murder him, but at the same time he was calm, polite to an extent, cool, and collected. He was intelligent and picked up on things quickly. The institute had been forced to put him in a windowless room that had a barricaded door.

His only communication with the outside world was the camera in the far corner constantly keeping an eye on him, a speaker through which people could talk to him, and the door. No matter how smart the boy was, there was no way he could open the door, no matter how much he wanted and tried to. Doctors and nurses visited him every once in a while, and rarely a volunteer would come see him or a janitor would clean up, but those times seemed to be every once in a blue moon. The hospital didn't really _want_ him talking to people.

Sasuke finally moved from his bed, placing his feet on the floor as he stood up. His clothes, too, were the same annoying color—if it could be considered a color—as everything else; a simple white shirt and pants. The only color in the entire room was his hair and eyes. His skin too, perhaps, but it was so pale it didn't really count. The boy stood there for a moment, then stared across the room at the camera. He would have broken it long ago, but the hospital had made sure to place it so the boy could not reach it.

Silently, he approached the camera. It followed his movements, moving so it was staring right back at him as he stood underneath it. Defiantly, Sasuke glared up at the camera, a scowl on his face. After several seconds, he turned away, moving back over to his bed. "Hn." At that moment, the speaker next to his bed crackled to life.

"Good morning, Uchiha-san." The voice, a young woman's, said. "How are you?" Without waiting for a response, since she was actually afraid of the boy's reaction—he had the camera to "speak" to, if he so chose—she continued. "Uchiha-san, this was an announcement given to the rest of the hospital earlier today, but you shall receive it now." Sasuke turned to glare at the camera once more, angered that they were bothering him about something so trivial. "Hn."

Hurriedly the woman said the announcement. "The hospital is accepting a handful of new volunteers later today, and they will be sent to every room. That includes yours." She told him warningly. "All patients are expected to treat their volunteer with kindness and respect. Meaning, don't scare them away." Her voice was stern, but Sasuke made no move to respond. His brow was furrowed slightly, the anger still clear in his eyes. "That is all Uchiha-san." _Click_. The speaker was shut off.

Sinking down to the floor, Sasuke let out a small, irritated groan. It was rare volunteers came, but whenever they did, his volunteer was _always_ a stupid girl who for some reason found him appealing and tried to make a move. The seventeen-year-old was extremely sick of it. If his volunteer was another girl who giggled incessantly and tried to become his "friend," so help him, the boy would do something about it.

He had no sense of time. After the first several months of confinement, days had started melding into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. Had a doctor not informed him when a year had gone by, every year, Sasuke would never have known he'd been locked up for ten years. He remained where he was on the floor for hours, or so it felt. It could have been less than a second for all the boy knew.

A nurse came into his room when he started talking to himself again, muttering furtively, his eyes darting around, obviously anxious. Gently, the woman helped lift the boy to his feet and guided him over to his bed. If Sasuke hadn't been lost inside his mind, he would have shoved the nurse away from him and retreated to the far side of the room. But, being that he was having one of his less than sane moments, he simply let himself be pulled along, his eyes unfocused.

When Sasuke sat down on his bed, the nurse sighed, pitying the boy in front of her. He was one of their longest-term patients, but he was also one of the youngest. She had been there when he was first admitted; back then he _had_ been the youngest. She'd considered it, at the time, almost inhumane to keep a little boy in the hospital, but seeing him more and more, she came to realize he was probably safer inside.

"The volunteers are coming within the hour, Uchiha-san." She told him gently, not sure if he comprehended what she said or not, especially since she received no word in response. Biting down on her lip, she reached into her pocket and took out a needle, a liquid medication inside it; Fluanxol. It was one of the many drugs Sasuke was given, and this one would calm him down, as well as put him to sleep for a bit.

The boy did not even notice when the woman injected the drug into his upper arm, but the effect was near instantaneous. He slumped down, still conscious at that point but fading fast. He relaxed visibly, and simply fell silent, no longer talking to himself. He glanced at the nurse out of the corner of his eye, still managed to glare at her for touching him. But after that, his eyes closed, and he fell back on the bed, entering a light sleep.

The nurse sighed again. The drug would only last for about an hour; it was likely to wear off around the time the volunteers arrived. She knew the boy would wake up screaming again, like always. She didn't blame him of course, not after what had happened, but she did wish he could move on. The trauma was lodged in him so deeply she didn't know if Sasuke would ever actually recover. After ten years, her hopes were running low.

She left the room with a last glance at the patient on the bed. "Sleep well, Uchiha-san." She murmured, knowing it wouldn't actually help.

* * *

♪**_I had a dream…♫_**

* * *

_"Foolish little brother..."_

"**No!**" His scream was even louder then before upon waking up. However, it was also a strange reprieve. The nightmare had been cut off; that was entirely new. Sasuke supposed something had simply woken him up. He was a light sleeper after all. Sitting up, once more breathing heavily, he listening closely for any sounds around him. The walls were thick, but they weren't soundproof.

If the boy paid strict attention, he could hear footsteps coming down the hall. That wasn't uncommon. What made it different was that this time it was numerous footsteps, scattered all over, and on top of that, the distinct murmur of chatter. Quickly, Sasuke realized, they must be the volunteers. Which, in turn, made him let out an over exaggerated sigh. How annoying.

They were approaching his room—he could tell because everything was getting a bit louder. Then, suddenly, the faint noises stopped. Thus, Sasuke had to presume they were right outside his room. That was enough. He didn't want to hear the name of who would be assigned to his room, or how long they would stay or anything else. So he covered his ears loosely, raising his gaze to the ceiling before closing his eyes. He didn't have to try too hard to block the sounds out.

Soon enough, he felt more than heard the door begin to open some. He removed his hands from his ears, resting them in his lap. He lowered his gaze from above, directing his stare toward the door. It was only open a slight crack, and he couldn't get a good look at whoever was going have "volunteer time" with him.

Sight had nothing to do with hearing. "Go away!" He heard the one at the door hiss. Distinctly female; it was loud and annoying. Perfect. "I'm serious, go away!" The girl persisted. "But—but, I wanna help you!" A whining male voice replied; perhaps even more annoying then the girl's voice.

"You'll have your own patient to help! I can do this fine on my own! I'll meet up with you later, okay?" It was boring to listen to, Sasuke decided. Ignoring the two, he laid back, once more staring up at the ceiling. Eventually, he wasn't even sure how long it took, the door opened all the way, and then closed, but the boy couldn't be bothered to look at the person invading his privacy. From the part of the conversation he'd heard, he was guessing his volunteer was the female. Like always.

"Hello, Sasuke-kun!" Yep, the female. Sasuke was starting to hate being right. Hell, the girl was using his first name and she didn't even _know_ him. That was somewhat insulting. Not even moving an inch, the boy couldn't be bothered to respond to her. Better to let her talk herself hoarse, if she so wished. The Uchiha despised when volunteers came. He never wanted them near him. But none of them gave up that easy—ever. "Sasuke-kun…?"

She was practically standing over him, but Sasuke simply looked right through the girl, unseeing. "**Sasuke-kun!**" She was shouting then, even louder than before. Angered, the boy switched his gaze to look at her. His first impression: _She was a freak_.

She had brilliant emerald eyes that blinked innocently at Sasuke. That wasn't too terrible, though the boy wasn't fond of the color green. It reminded him of grass, which was in the outside world; a place he would likely never see again. But her eyes weren't the half of it. Her _hair_ was what bothered him. The girl's hair was pink. Absolutely and truly pink. Close as she was, Sasuke could tell it wasn't even dyed. What kind of girl had natural pink hair?

The girl in question couldn't help but notice the boy in front of her staring at her so intently. She tilted her head to the side, smiling at him before giggling slightly, to which Sasuke frowned disapprovingly. She was acting just like all the others. Her strange pink hair was long, falling to the middle of her back, and was pulled away from her face with a headband. In that moment, the boy noted that her forehead was a bit larger than average.

She wasn't ugly. She wasn't pretty. He felt absolutely no attraction to her. "My name is Haruno Sakura!" The volunteer proclaimed. Sasuke had no reaction to her strange antics, but he began to sit up. Realizing this, Sakura backed away slightly, to give him some room. Once he was fully sitting up, he turned his gaze to Sakura, who looked away quickly, a light blush staining her cheeks. Great. She was becoming more and more like those other volunteers with every passing second.

Was there no such thing as a harmless person who had the decency to at least attempt to act normal around him? When it came to volunteers, that was all Sasuke wanted. So far, he wasn't getting it. He turned away from her, staring at the camera across the room. He merely glared at it for a bit before glancing back at Sakura. He said nothing, hell he hardly ever spoke, so the girl would have to learn how to communicate with him in her own way. Naturally, that meant she would talk a lot.

"So, Sasuke-kun, what do you like to do?" There was silence, and a slight scowl that was starting to form on his face. "How long have you been here?" More silence, along with a now fully pronounced scowl. "Do you ever get visitors?" The silence on his end was near deafening, and yes, he was definitely glaring at her. She swallowed nervously. "Do you want me to just stop talking?" A brief silence, then...

"Aa."

Sakura wanted to jump for joy and celebrate that she'd gotten something resembling a response from the quiet boy in front of her, but the fact that he'd answered with such a vague statement to her question was somewhat disheartening, especially since it was fairly obvious he was much happier with her silent. "All right well..." No, no, he was glaring at her again. "Please just hold on! I'll let you know what's happening and then I swear I won't talk anymore!" She breathed in relief as he seemed sated by her answer.

"As I already said, my name is Haruno Sakura, seventeen years old, and I'm your volunteer! I'll be coming every day to see you, from three to five in the afternoon for the entire week! Starting from today, Sunday, and ending on Saturday! So now, we have two whole hours together! And I'll be quiet..." She said the last part almost regretfully; like she wished she didn't have to simply sit there. But she was a volunteer, and it was her job to make the patients happy. So, if Sasuke wanted her to stop talking, she would!

* * *

♪_**Of the pale morning sky…♫**_

* * *

...Okay, it wasn't as easy to be quiet as the girl had thought it would be. And it had only been thirty minutes! But there Sasuke was, sitting on his bed and content with just looking at his ceiling and all but ignoring Sakura. "Sasuke-kun...?" Oh no, he was glaring again. Vaguely, she wondered if that was a pastime of his. "I'm sorry Sasuke-kun, but I can't just sit here and be quiet when there is another person in the room!" The volunteer had to stop herself from laughing out loud as the boy began looking around the room slowly. "I mean _you_ Sasuke-kun!" She lost the urge to stop laughing as he glowered at her, obviously blaming her. 

Whenever he looked at her like that, it always got harder for the girl to think of what to say. She couldn't help but notice that despite the years locked that away had affected the boy, he still maintained his looks. Sakura was a girl. She couldn't help but think if a boy was cute or not! Still watching Sasuke, she blushed lightly again. Obviously he noticed, for he scowled and stared across the room, most likely at the camera. Disheartened, she cupped her face in her palms, elbows resting on her knees.

She found him attractive. Hell, any girl in her position would probably envy her, despite the fact that his glare was terrifying. It took her a lot of effort not to jump and cling to him right then and there, and suddenly tell him she liked him. He'd probably push her off the bed for that. But despite the fact that he was emotionless and rude, Sakura really did find herself falling for the boy she hadn't even known for an hour yet.

He found her annoying, extremely annoying. She was probably the most annoying out of all of the girls. He hated the way she called him Sasuke-kun after they barely knew each other. He was sick of seeing her blush, like he'd seen all the other girls do. He was expecting her to declare her love for him sometime soon. He knew she'd latch herself onto him eventually. They all did. He didn't have room in his heart to love someone. He didn't want to.

The rest of the time was spent with Sakura staring at Sasuke, giggling and blushing all the while; Sasuke clearly ignoring her and just wanting her to shut up; and the girl wishing that she could stay there forever, while the boy wished for nothing more than the time to end. Luckily for Sasuke, all things, good or bad, must come to an end.

When the door opened and someone looked in, both volunteer and patient turned sharply to see who was entering the room, only to relax upon seeing the nurse. "Well hello Uchiha-san, Haruno-san. How is it going?" Sakura beamed. "Great!" she exclaimed, even though part of her was feeling rather low, since she hadn't gotten anywhere with Sasuke. She still knew next to nothing about him. Said boy didn't even answer the nurse's question.

But it seemed the nurse only cared about Sakura's answer anyway, for she smiled. "That's good to hear. As I'm sure you know it's been two hours. You can go home now, Haruno-san." She told the girl, withdrawing her head and shutting the door. Sakura sighed, standing up and she gazed back at Sasuke. "Well—" She began to speak, but was cut off as the door opened again.

This time, however, it wasn't the nurse.

A blur of blonde and orange darted across the room and was suddenly hugging Sakura before anyone could blink. "I'm so glad to see you again Sakura-chan!" The speaker was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy wearing an orange jumpsuit who stood a bit shorter than Sakura. He was slight, smaller than average and carried the looks of someone who knew it. But his eyes were alight, like a fire burned deep within him, and a huge smile was spread across his face. Yet as he kept his arms around Sakura, the girl raised her arm and smacked the boy across the back of his head.

"Naruto, let go of me!" Sakura cried out. Apologetically, the boy let go. "I'm sorry, Sakura-chan. I just got so excited to see you again!" The girl rolled her eyes and let out a groan. "You saw me two hours ago! You wanted to come with me instead of going to the patient you were assigned to!" She told him exasperatedly.

Sasuke watched all this was significant un-interest. Yet the two in front of him were acting so strange...it was bothering him. He just wanted to kick them out. Naruto just started clinging to Sakura once again, paying no mind to the other boy in the room. "Yes but I love hanging out with you! So how was your volunteer time?" He asked. Sakura allowed herself a side glance at Sasuke, one that Naruto did not notice. "It was...quiet." The girl decided.

"Huh?" Naruto questioned. Obviously the meaning of "quiet" was completely lost on him. "Quiet, Naruto, quiet. It's the art of _not talking_." She muttered. "Sasuke-kun here has mastered it." Naruto's eyes got extremely wide at that point, like he couldn't believe there were people in the world who didn't like speaking. "Really, you're serious?" He turned to look at the bed; mainly the person sitting in it.

Both boys froze as onyx eyes met bright blue optics. The same thought was running through their head as the staring contest continued: _I don't like this guy_. "...Oi." Naruto muttered, now glaring at Sasuke, who glared right back. "This guy is a bastard, Sakura-chan!" The blond declared suddenly, much to Sakura's shock. "That's not true Naruto! He just has a hard time opening up to others!" Sasuke nearly twitched at that. She was making up excuses for him?

"No, Sakura-chan, he does not look like a nice guy!" Naruto drawled in that whiny voice, looking away from Sasuke and back toward the pink-haired-girl. "Just shut up Naruto!" Sakura growled at him, which of course shut Naruto right up. Not. "But Sakura-chan..." The girl's eyes flashed. "Naruto, I'm serious!" The shorter boy looked ready to protest, but instead developed a pout. "Fine..."

Satisfied, Sakura smiled charmingly at the patient on the bed. "Well, Sasuke-kun, since I have to go, I guess I'll see you tomorrow! I look forward to it! Goodbye!" She made her way to the door, Naruto close behind, but the girl looked meaningfully at Sasuke, like she expected him to say a goodbye to her in return. But as the raven-haired-boy sat on his bed, barely showing his attention to the people in his room, Sakura felt like complaining. She'd spent two whole hours with him, and now he didn't have the courtesy to say goodbye?

He was hot, so that partially excused him in her eyes, but the fact that he wouldn't say anything still hurt, a bit. She stood there for a long moment, Naruto jumping from foot to foot impatiently, obviously wanting out of the room. Eventually, Sasuke realized the two wouldn't leave unless he said _something_, so abruptly, the boy raised his head, staring right at Sakura, who promptly blushed, feeling like a static shock was running through her. Scowling faintly, Sasuke opened his mouth to say his "farewell."

"...Annoying..."

That word was perhaps the most he'd ever said in a long time. But he was still looking at her with that—she tried not to think of it as _handsome_—scowl. The word had been used in reference to her; an insult. He found her annoying. For some reason, well, obviously because she liked him, it hurt more than many other names she had been called.

And the static shock that had flowed through Sakura ebbed away, leaving a numb feeling in its place as the girl fled from the room. Naruto was quick to follow...

...While Sasuke continued to stare at the ceiling, hating the fact that tomorrow would come, and he'd have to suffer through another two hours with that girl.

* * *

♪**_I want to live...♫_**

* * *

"Hey—hey, Sakura-chan, wait for me!" The blonde-haired boy called as loudly as he could in the hospital, chasing after his friend, who was still on the run. "Sakura-chan...!" But she didn't listen. Only when they were near the entrance/exit of the building did the girl even slow down, and that was probably because there were people around who could see her. Taking advantage of this fact, Naruto grabbed Sakura's arm gently. "C'mon Sakura-chan..." 

Naruto had had a crush on Sakura for as long as he could remember. She always rejected him, but the two remained friends through it all. The blue-eyed boy simply could not get it through his thick skull that his friend did not like him that way. But Naruto had probably developed a crush on Sakura _because_ she was his friend. She was the only one who treated him like he was human. Well, not entirely. She actually treated him a lot like all the others.

She called him names, hit him on the head, insulted him whenever the time called for it, and always compared him to other guys, where Naruto was the loser. But at the same time, Sakura had another side to her. She realized there was another aspect to the boy, and there were times—rare times—when she actually seemed like she cared for him. She'd also agreed to be his "friend," if it could really be called that.

To Sakura, Naruto was simply like an extremely agitating younger brother. He was hyper, stupidly funny, and overall a clown who simply wanted attention from others. He always had to have the last word and didn't know the meaning of give up. She could have ditched him long ago and felt no guilt, but there was the one part of her that put up with Naruto. Even though she pushed him around...they had a strange bond.

"C'mon Sakura-chan, what's wrong? It's not what that the teme said, is it?" he asked loudly, brows furrowing as he tried to help his friendly in his overly helpful, and at times annoying, way. But the girl simply pushed the boy away from her, hugging her stomach. "I'm fine Naruto." She told her, him voice overall steady despite her actions. But Naruto wasn't buying it; despite how stupid he was most of the time, he occasionally was able to pick up on when Sakura wasn't happy.

He opened his mouth to argue, but the girl beat him to it. "And don't call him that, Naruto. He didn't do anything to you." She murmured. At that point, the blonde felt it necessary to point out that he didn't care if the bastard hurt him—he'd obviously caused Sakura pain. But before he could do so, he did a double-take; realizing said girl was walking away. "H-hey!" Naruto cried out, running after her.

When he caught up, the two walked side by side. Sakura was usually exuberant and cheerful, but the journey was filled with a depressing silence that Naruto's endless babble did not seem to affect. Had the patient she'd gone to see really had such an affect on her? Not sure entirely what was going on, Naruto could only figure that there was definitely something different about Sasuke. Hell, why was a kid their age stuck in that place anyways? Sakura didn't seem to know either.

Finally, when the silence threatened to cut through the blonde like a knife, he glanced over at his friend. "Will you go back tomorrow?" At his question, Sakura raised her head, blinking in slight shock. "Of course I will." She answered, her voice determined. "You're sure?" Naruto pressed. "Shut up Naruto!" Sakura yelled at him. "I'm not some baby who needs to be constantly looked after! Just because of what happened today doesn't mean I'm going to give up!" The fire was back in her eyes, and as scared as he was of Sakura when she was angry, Naruto couldn't help but smile inwardly.

Despite what had happened earlier, the upbeat Sakura would always resurface. It seemed to be a conditioned reflex of hers. At the cross streets, the two went their separate ways. Naruto back to his cramped, one bedroom apartment where he lived alone; and Sakura to her house where her parents were awaiting their only daughter's return. The girl, mostly out of pity, had asked Naruto if he wanted to move in with her, but each time the blonde refused. He was an orphan who had never known his parents—he didn't want people to show him sympathy because of how he lived.

The boy turned left, heading in the direction of his apartment. "I'll see you tomorrow Sakura-chan!" He called over his shoulder, waving back at the girl before sprinting down the street. "Bye Naruto!" The pink-haired-girl yelled after him. Then she turned right, going toward her house. A guilty part of her looked forward to the two hours she would spend with Sasuke the next day.

* * *

♪**_If the silence takes you...♫_**

* * *

Dusk had fallen; it was almost six o'clock in the evening. The hospital had, for the most part, fallen silent as the patients began to calm down. Many were true, high-strung, mental cases, but there were a few others like Sasuke—the ones that had traumatic pasts and would be able to get by in society with few mishaps, but were better off behind walls. 

The lights would not go out for around two more hours, but Sasuke, even though he usually did not get adequate amounts of sleep due to his nightmares, believed in sleeping early and then rising at the crack of dawn. His pattern of sleep was not quite accurate to that, but infuriatingly close. He woke up in the middle of the night often, though, and struggled with his internal and external conflicts.

The boy fell back on his bed, lying on top of the blankets as he stared up at the mass of white that was his ceiling above his head before closing his eyes. It didn't matter that the lights wouldn't be going off for a while. He'd be able to rest long before then. And as he let sleep claim him, preparing himself for the nightmares, two thoughts crossed his mind before he passed out.

_"I'm going to hate this entire week."_ and _"Tomorrow is going to be a long day."_

* * *

Finished! Well, with the first chapter anyways. I feel slightly unoriginal—lots of people have "Sasuke and/or Naruto get admitted to the mental hospital" stories, but I did think of this idea before I researched just how many other stories like this there were. My result: Well, I didn't find any with this _exact_ idea. By the way, I don't own the music lyrics either! I tried to keep the characters as in character as possible. Did I succeed? I do have an ending in mind, but whether or not I get that far is up to you, the reviewers! Did you hate it? Love it? Tell me! I accept flames and praise all in one go! If I get enough reviews chapter two goes up that much faster! And I won't update at all unless I have at least seven reviews! 


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